… Political violence in democracies often seems spontaneous: an angry mob launching a pogrom, a lone shooter assassinating a president. But in fact, the crisis has usually been building for years, and the risk factors are well known. The United States is now walking the last steps on that path. […] Read more »
Even With 190,000 Dead, There’s a Lot That Voters Don’t Know
President Trump mocked Joe Biden for his mask wearing at a campaign rally last week, saying, “Did you ever see a man who likes a mask as much as him?” Polling has shown that the public overwhelmingly backs mask requirements, which Mr. Biden has long supported. President Trump, on the […] Read more »
How did mask wearing become so politicized?
Protestors hold anti-mask signs at a protest in St. Paul, Minnesota. Education Images / Getty Images Matthew Facciani, Vanderbilt University The United States has lagged behind much of the world in its efforts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. Not wearing a mask has become a political act even though masks […] Read more »
Ethnic antagonism erodes Republicans’ commitment to democracy
Growing partisan polarization and democratic “backsliding” in various parts of the world have raised concerns about the attachment of ordinary Americans to democratic institutions and procedures. I find that substantial numbers of Republicans endorse statements contemplating violations of key democratic norms, including respect for the law and for the outcomes […] Read more »
Why they follow
President Trump has a knack for getting Republicans to reverse their stances on important policy issues. Free trade is probably the best-known example. … These trends can seem disconcerting, because they appear to reverse the idealized direction of influence in a democracy, where the views of citizens are supposed to […] Read more »
2020 Republican National Convention Recap
This week’s Republican convention did an especially efficient job of encapsulating the current state of the party after four years of Donald Trump’s leadership. In terms of the roster of speakers and the venues at which they spoke, the convention reflected the extent to which the party has become a […] Read more »